Contribution to the evaluation of the impact of the argan oil sector on the empowerment of women's production cooperatives in the province of Tiznit

Abstract

The dynamics Morocco faced, around local products, including the argan tree, pushed us to focus on cooperatives of production of argan oil, as social and solidarity economy organizations, which promote economic diversity and social inclusion of women. The argan tree represents a natural resource of high value of solidarity anchored in the traditions and the customs of the local populations, in particular the women. Its exploitation is part of a chain where the women’s argan cooperatives occupy an important place in its structure. From the need to examine, their effects on the Empowerment of the women involved, as well as to estimate their profitability and their viability. To achieve these goals, we conducted our study at the level of the women’s argan cooperatives in Tiznit. We proceeded by a decortication of the Empowerment in several dimensions, that we estimated each through scores to deduct a global index grouping all of the dimensions. The study showed that with the exception of the less than 35-year-old young women who have an index of autonomy appreciably higher, the other categories are approximately equivalent. The score of the married women exceeds a little the non-married ones. The results also show a higher index of the members of the office to that of the salaried women. In parallel, the financial evaluation of these cooperatives by the cost-benefit analysis in deterministic environment shows positive NPV, Internal Rate of Return from 7 to 12 % for a discount rate of 7 %, Benefits-Costs Ratio superior to 1 and a Payback from 8 to 11 years for all the cooperatives of the sample with the exception of one that shows indicators justifying its not profitability. The probability of recording a negative NPV is low for all the cooperatives.